


Useful

by Phantom_of_the_Frost



Series: Summoning Circles [2]
Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Dark Magic, Summoning, Summoning Circles, Witchcraft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-08
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:49:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24612547
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phantom_of_the_Frost/pseuds/Phantom_of_the_Frost
Summary: Valerie Gray finally figures out a way to catch her most hated prey - Danny Phantom.
Relationships: Danny Fenton & Valerie Gray, Danny Phantom & Valerie Gray
Series: Summoning Circles [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1779394
Comments: 25
Kudos: 262





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the second story in the Summoning Circles series.
> 
> I've already planned more in-depth stories than this one, but this idea had been in my head for a few days so I went ahead and wrote it. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Valerie was ecstatic. She was  _ finally _ about to catch the ghost boy freak and put him down  _ for good. _ She was sick of chasing the thing all across town, leaving property damage and terror in their wake. The town was sick and tired of them fighting and had begun to give  _ her _ hate for trying to take him down. They had started to  _ like _ the fucking ghost kid that named himself ‘Danny Phantom.’ 

She woke up in the morning, seeing ‘#DownWithRed’ lining her social media feed along with nasty messages of her being a  _ poacher  _ trying to take down some peaceful entity for her own gain. These people thought that  _ she _ was the bad guy because they ignorantly bought into Phantom’s obsession with playing the hero. 

The public was calling for her blood, wishing for her to be arrested or that Phantom would take her down once and for all. The people  _ hated _ her for protecting them, leaving her in utter disbelief. It was  _ disgusting _ how this ghost was twisting the narrative and manipulating her friends, her  _ people. _

Well, she was going to end that.  _ Danny Phantom _ , the ghost that did nothing but attract ghosts for him to ‘save’ the town from and trick the people into loving him,  _ worshiping _ him, as a hero… he was going down. And god, she hoped he went down  _ hard. _

But she couldn’t take him down in the streets. No, that would only result with much more hate from the people she was only trying to protect. She had been trying to figure out a way to end the ghost out of the public’s eye for the last three weeks, and she had finally found what she needed. 

A  _ summoning circle _ . An ancient art that brought the ecto-filth to you and, not only that, but  _ trapped  _ them there. She could technically just summon the ghost and keep him trapped in the circle for the rest of his afterlife, but she wasn’t going to risk that. The ghost was clever and had somehow managed to make human allies. She would trap him, interrogate him, and then  _ end _ him. 

She had spent the better part of an hour perfecting each sigil and detail on the chalk circle, praying that this would work. She had purified the chalk like the book she had found at their local goth library had suggested. She had also used the circle meant to hold a powerful and malevolent ghost and had taken the extra precaution of salt circles surrounding the summoning circle. 

She wasn’t very optimistic about the salt lines, nor the circle itself if she was being honest, but she prayed this would work to at least get the ghost  _ here _ . Whether or not the salt or chalk worked to hold the ghost didn’t matter nearly as much as whether the ritual she was to perform would actually work to  _ summon _ Phantom. 

All she needed was for him to rear his ugly head and she would handle the rest. She was well armed, all of her weapons cleaned and prepped, fully loaded in case worse came to worse. 

She finished tracing the final lines of chalk and stepped outside of the circle, careful not to smudge her hard work. She stepped back over the line of salt and went to the altar she had fashioned out of a cardboard box. It was all the ghost deserved.

She  _ despised _ the idea of having an  _ altar _ for her worst enemy, but the book harped that it was one of the most critical steps of ensuring she summoned the  _ right _ ghost, so she did, although she didn’t make it look nice at  _ all _ . She had a blurry picture of the ghost on the altar, as well as a sample of his ectoplasm that she had collected by scraping him with her board. Her board had seemed to internalize the sample, and although she didn’t know why, she hadn’t questioned it at the time. 

It wasn’t too hard to dismantle her board to get the sample before reassembling it. The DNA sample and pictures were a lot more than the alter required, but she wanted to ensure there were no mistakes. 

Hell, she had even stayed after school almost every day last week to speak to their Latin teacher so she could enunciate everything as accurately as possible. 

She had been preparing for this for what felt like  _ ages _ . And here she was, finally ready. She gave one last look at her handiwork, before kneeling down beside the altar and lighting a candle to illuminate herself in the dark room. 

She began reciting the words, carefully reading them out of the book, trying to ignore how stupid she felt speaking to an empty room. After the first several lines, she began to grow angry as nothing happened. The book had talked about  _ so _ many things she should expect when summoning a ghost, yet here she was, not a damn sign that any of this was working. Had she wasted the last several weeks of her life?

Just as she began to doubt herself and wondered whether she had messed up the words or left something out on the circle, she felt a coldness encase the room. She paused her words, and soon, the coldness began to fade. 

Fearing she had imagined it, she quickly began reciting the mantra again and was elated to feel the coldness return. She continued, voice growing stronger with her newfound confidence and felt an almost electric charge fill the room. She continued reading, wishing she could look up to see what was happening around her. A light appeared in front of her, and she continued reading, rushing to finish so she could see the apparition in front of her. 

It was terrifying to feel this much energy and power contained in the room yet not being able to look at the potential threat. There was a loud boom that made her flinch just as she finished reciting the last words, and she finally lifted her gaze to see what she had summoned. 

She saw the ghost boy, but he was sitting on the floor, sitting up and looking around as if confused. 

“Wha-what the hell?” he said, reaching up to rub his eyes as if he had been sleeping. 

Valerie didn’t respond at first, too in awe that this had actually worked. All of her problems would end  _ tonight. _ She would get revenge on this spook for ruining her life and for bringing so much trouble and fear to her town. 

The ghost’s burning green eyes finally fell on her, and she was pleased at the flash of fear that crossed his face before he masked it. 

“Red? What the hell do you want at three in the  _ fucking _ morning?!” The ghost stood taking a step towards her before pausing and glancing down at the chalk circle that caged him. He looked back towards her, a healthy amount of anger and fear on his face. 

“Hey,  _ Phantom _ ,” she said, spitting his name like a curse. “Found this dusty old book and figured I’d try it out. Why don’t you try to escape?” She taunted, wanting to test the circle and salt and see if it would truly hold him. 

He glared at her, before dropping his gaze back down to the chalk. She watched as he half-heartedly tried to smudge the chalk with his foot, before giving up and returning to stare at her. 

_ Interesting. _ He was acting as if he  _ knew _ he couldn’t escape. He must have been trapped in one of these circles before, Valerie thought. 

She stepped forward, hands behind her back and tilted her head as she appraised him. “No puns or witty comebacks tonight, Phantom?” She mocked, pleased as his anger grew. 

“Just get this over with, Red. What do you want?” He said, crossing his arms, with almost a pout on his face. 

She laughed, feeling  _ amazing _ at finally having the upper hand. “You wanna get right to the point, ghost kid? I’m rather enjoying myself,” she said, almost wishing he could see her smile under her mask. 

He frowned at her but didn’t answer. She watched, amused, as he tried and failed to stifle a yawn. 

“Here’s how this is going to go, ghost. I’m going to ask questions, and you’re going to answer. After that, I’m going to let you go,” she lied, watching the sudden boredom that overcame his features. 

“You’re just gonna ‘let me go?’” The ghost mocked, glaring at her in disbelief. “God, y’know, I always assumed that you’d be a  _ good _ liar, with the whole  _ secret identity _ thing?”

She shot him a glare even though he couldn’t see it, before stepping closer to the circle. 

She was about to learn  _ everything _ . 

  
  


Valerie carefully maneuvered down the old, creaky steps into the dark and damp basement below. It had been about three weeks since she had first trapped the ghost, and she had learned a  _ ton.  _ Thank God it was summer, or she’d have never been able to spend this much time interrogating the ghost. 

For one, she had learned that the ghost ate human food and  _ slept. _ And if that wasn’t creepy enough, he had  _ dreams _ . Or, more specifically, he had nightmares.

She knew she had intended to kill the ghost that night she trapped him, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Sure, he had allies, but how would they ever find him? The book said that the circle caged  _ all _ of the ghost, including their ectoplasmic signature. That, and it was obvious the ghost wasn’t able to escape on his own, despite his numerous efforts. Even his ghostly wail, as he called it, simply reflected off of the chalk lines and went back to harm him. 

He had only tried the wail once, during the second day of his stay, learning the first time that once he unleashed it, it did nothing but bounce around in his chalk cell, damaging only himself. 

It was hilarious that for once, the only thing his strongest power did was hurt himself and make his  _ own _ ears bleed instead of leaving behind acres of property damage.

Besides, with him alive she had so much knowledge at her fingertips. It was much smarter to keep the ghost as informant than to do anything else. He had  _ already _ aided her in taking down the Fright Knight. Sure, he hadn’t  _ wanted  _ to help, but he did by telling her that all she had to do was stab the ghost’s sword into a pumpkin. A  _ freakin’  _ pumpkin!

He had tried to keep the information to himself, but once she made it clear she’d rather have the town razed to the  _ ground _ before letting him run free, he gave in, telling her everything she needed to know. It was amusing, really, how he still insisted on keeping his facade of being a hero.

She was smiling to herself as she took the final steps down into the basement, a bag of old Nasty Burger food left over from work clutched in her hand. She turned the corner to the main part of the basement and headed towards the white aura radiating off of the spook. He had become less angry and more resigned in his few weeks staying in her basement, and this reflected in his gradually dimming aura.

The first days had consisted solely of her having to listen to his screams of outrage and pointless arguments, but that died down soon enough. He quickly learned that, in a war of attrition, she would  _ always _ win. She’s been putting up with people’s shit all her life. Her friends abandoning her, the town turning on her and  _ hating _ her for doing her job, and,  _ hell _ , she worked at a fast-food restaurant. It’d be odd for her to  _ not _ get screamed at or threatened on a daily basis. And Phantom? She’s been dealing with his shit for  _ years _ . She wouldn’t give in to his anger or his self-righteous lies and would keep him here for as long as she deemed necessary.

For some reason, though, he  _ still _ acted as if she wasn’t his enemy and had tried to bargain his way out more than once. Sure, he was desperate and was trying to talk his way out of here, but even when he had been angry and screaming at her, none of his threats were directed towards her. Instead, they were always about people coming for him. ‘My friends are going to find me, Red!’ ‘You can’t keep me here forever, Red!’ etc. 

She had refused his bargains and laughed at his threats. There was no way he was getting away from her. She tossed the bag of fast food into the circle, watching as the food exploded from the bag and scattered across the damp basement floor. The ghost ignored it, instead, looking at her. For once, there wasn’t even a trace of anger on his face. Instead, he looked… sad. Forlorn. It was pitiful. Disgusting.

They stared at one another in silence, his eyes full of sorrow and hers full of apathy, before the ghost turned away from her, still ignoring the dirty food. 

She turned to leave but was stopped at his uncharacteristically soft voice. “How long are you going to keep me here?” He asked, still facing away from her. He was hugging his legs to his chest and resting his head on them.

She turned back around, taking a long moment to stare at the ghost’s slumped shoulders and defeated posture before replying: “Until you’re no longer useful ghost  _ scum. _ ”

He didn’t move, frozen to the spot for several long moments and she finally turned to leave. 

She would keep him here as her own personal  _ pet _ until he was no longer useful. Then, and only then, she would finally release him and then kill him. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! I finally found time to finish this chapter and plan for the end of the story!

It had been two more weeks of her keeping the ghost captive, but the pressure was building against her. The ghost became more and more depressing to look at. He was refusing to eat and would no longer speak or look at her, no matter what she did or said. 

She had even held a blaster to the edge of the summoning circle, but all the ghost did was press his head against it, stating that he was already dead, not at all deterred by her threat. 

But the  _ real _ problem was the town. They still suspected her of being the reason the ghost kid had gone missing and were throwing things at her and shouting at her every time she showed her face. They even  _ aided _ a ghost in escaping her, all while telling her to go burn in hell. 

It was  _ absurd _ . And not only was her ghost hunting persona receiving hate from all angles, but some of her _classmates_ were also treating her as if she was the enemy. 

Sam had cornered her a few weeks ago and questioned her as if she  _ knew _ that she was holding Phantom. She had ignored the girl and called her crazy, not at all shocked that the goth was one of Phantom’s allies. She would be attracted to a  _ dead  _ person just to seem more ‘edgy.’

When she had asked Phantom about it, he hadn’t responded to either agree or disagree with her accusation. 

But the  _ main _ reason she felt as if she was about to explode from pressure? The ghosts have been banding together, coming in groups of five or more and attacking her. They weren’t focused on the town; no, they were going after  _ her. _ They were demanding to know what she did with their king. 

And  _ that  _ was the problem. Phantom was apparently the ghost  _ king. _ She was returning home after one such encounter, where Skulker, Ember, YoungBlood, Johnny 13, Kitty,  _ and _ Shadow had all ambushed her and beat the living shit out of her. For the first time in her  _ life _ , Valerie had to run from a fight. 

They had screamed and swore that they were going to find him and that only  _ they _ could mess with him. They tried to follow her, but she was much quicker and managed to lose them before arriving at her home. 

She entered the house through her bedroom window, taking off her torn and utterly  _ ruined _ suit only to reveal her bloody and battered body below her. Phantom, even trapped in a cage, was winning, even if he didn’t know it. 

She took a long hot shower before dressing her wounds and putting on oversized sweatpants and a loose T-shirt. She needed answers. 

She had originally decided not to tell Phantom that she had discovered he was the king of all ghosts, fearing it would give him hope that his friends were coming for him. How else would she have figured it out? But now, she just wanted information,  _ anything _ , to help her. 

She walked back into the damp basement, walking towards the dim glow of the ghost’s aura. It was steadily growing weaker, and now he almost looked human as he laid curled on the floor. He pushed himself into a sitting position but didn’t turn to face her. 

“So, freak. You’re the King of All Ghosts?” She said, voice much more tired than she had intended. 

This, however, seemed to catch Phantom’s attention, and he turned to face her. She was shocked at his appearance. His cheeks were hollow, and his face was dirty, but what really caught her attention was that his eyes, for the first time ever, were burning with hatred as he looked at her. 

He seemed to take a moment to calm himself, eyes clouding over the hatred with a thick layer of apathy before he spoke. 

“I, uh, haven’t actually accepted the title, so, no,” he said, eyes holding hers. She realized, absentmindedly, that this was the first time she had came down here in regular clothes. She had always worn her suit and kept her mask on. The ghost was seeing her face… God, how stupid was she? Just because she was exhausted and hurting, she forgot the most important thing  _ ever _ . 

“W-why haven’t you accepted the title?” She asked, crossing her arms and internally screaming at her stupid mistake. 

The ghost seemed to think over his words before answering in a voice rough from disuse. “I just wanted to be a normal teenager. I died really young…” There was a short pause as Valerie soaked in the words. It was really easy to forget that Phantom used to be alive. “I never got to live my own life when I was alive, and I just,” the ghost paused, licking his chapped lips before continuing, voice much softer than before. “I just wanted to live my own life, not the life someone else dictated for me.” Valerie paused for a long moment, an odd flash of guilt coming over her. She sat down on the floor, crossing her legs and leaning against the grimy wall behind her. She heaved a big sigh, trying to wrap her tired mind around what the ghost was saying. 

She couldn’t afford to let her guard down anymore or make any other stupid mistakes just because she was exhausted and in pain. She was better than that; she  _ had _ to be. 

“So what? You’re some sob story that just wants to be understood?” Valerie grumbled, pressing the back of her hand against her swollen cheek. Kitty could really pack a punch when she wanted to. 

Phantom, surprisingly, laughed, a deep, echoing sound that sent a chill down Valerie’s spine. “Trust me… I’m no sob story. If anything,  _ your _ life story is more tragic than mine, and I’m fucking  _ dead _ ,” Phantom snarled at her. 

Valerie sat up straighter, glaring at the ghost in front of her. “My life is ruined  _ because of you _ ,” she accused. “ _ You’re _ the reason I have  _ nothing _ . The reason I have  _ no one _ . I would have never had to dirty my hands dealing with  _ ghost scum _ if you hadn’t taken everything away from me!” She stood up, voice rising until she was screaming at the ghost glaring hatefully from where he sat on the ground. 

There was a long silence where they simply glared at one another, the only sound being Valerie’s heavy breathing before she continued. “But, I guess, in a way, I should be thanking you. Without you, I would have never become the Red Huntress and this town would still be in danger.” She huffed a laugh. “In a way, you  _ did _ end up protecting Amity, huh, Phantom?”

The ghost didn’t reply, instead turning away from her. Just as Valerie was about to give up for the night and go get some much needed rest, he spoke. 

“Y’know, the  _ real _ reason I protect this town is because one of my friends told me to,” the ghost said, voice quiet and barely audible as he still faced away from her. “That’s it. I was trying to impress her, and so I played superhero. I didn’t take any of this seriously until the first person I was trying to save died. I was fighting the, uh, Wisconsin Ghost and I blocked one of his shots. It ricocheted and caught a middle-aged woman in the chest.” 

There was a long pause before the ghost continued. “I didn’t even find out until the next day when I saw it on the news.” Phantom chuckled darkly, and Valerie got the feeling that the ghost wasn’t holding near as well as she had thought he was. “It was caught on camera, y’know? I got to  _ see it _ happen. Her name was Diana Faulker. Sh-she had been cheering me on when she was hit.”

Valerie pulled her legs to her chest while studying the ghost trapped in the chalk circle. His shoulders were hunched as if ashamed. She couldn’t help but roll her eyes at the ridiculousness of it all. “You’re the  _ King _ of Ghosts. Wouldn’t people dying just, I don’t know, make you stronger?” 

Phantom just shrugged. “I don’t care about power. If I did, then I would have accepted the title.” There was another short pause, and Valerie couldn’t stop the yawn that came over her. She checked the time on her phone, sighing when realizing just how late it was. Still, she was learning about the ghost, and that was always worth it. 

“Besides, most people don’t become ghosts. There has to be something keeping them here. Family, friends, or  _ unfinished business _ ,” he said, sarcasm dripping as he said the cliche line. “I wasn’t murdered. In fact, I think the only reason I’m still here is because I thought my friends died, too. When I learned they survived, I was happy, but I was still here. I don’t really know why I’m here if I’m being honest,” he said in an apathetic tone, as if he didn’t care whether he existed or not.

Valerie never really  _ knew _ that not everyone becomes a ghost when they die, but something about the notion comforted her. Maybe she didn’t have to fear becoming what she hated as much as she had thought.

“Some ghost that reigns over time, his name’s Clockwork, says that I have a lot left to give, so maybe that’s why.” He shrugged and frowned down at the floor. “Even when I’m dead I can’t make decisions for myself.” 

Valerie was stunned into silence for a long moment before she finally spoke. She’s not sure why this ghost felt so  _ human _ . Was this how his allies felt? Was this how he tricked them too? She didn’t know, but she felt the need to find out. “What did Clockwork want you to do?” 

Phantom glanced at her for a brief moment before his eyes turned back towards the floor. “I’m not sure. I think he wanted me to protect Amity, but now I think he wants me to become the ghost king.” The ghost paused for a moment before continuing. “Do you know about a ghost’s obsessions?” 

She was a little confused about the topic change but nodded anyway. 

“Yeah, well, my friend wanted me to protect the town, and after that bystander died… protecting people became my primary obsession. I didn’t want anyone else to die. Especially not because of me. I died before I was supposed to, and I don’t want that to happen to anyone else,” his voice that had been almost emotionless, took on a stronger, more determined tone as he spoke.

“Clockwork encouraged the obsession. Hell, he even showed me some future that I become some huge villain that tries to kill Amity, which scared me enough to dive head first into the obsession. After seeing that future, I finally accepted the role of protecting the town and adopting it as my lair. I’d never really done anything that  _ ghost-like _ before,” Phantom said softly as he hunched his shoulders as if ashamed.

“Anyways, that obsession was one of the things encouraging me to challenge the past ghost-king. He tried to hurt the town. Now I have the title of ghost king, and Clockwork wants me to accept it. It wasn’t until recently I realized he’d been manipulating me. Whether that’s to prevent some horrible future or to bring one into reality, I’m not quite sure. He’s an old and very wise ghost. I don’t want to try and beat him in either a fight or in a battle of wits. I’d lose.”

Phantom never looked up at her as he spoke, and Valerie didn’t try to interrupt him. She had already learned about another powerful ghost that even  _ Phantom _ seemed afraid of and was learning much more about his past and why he does what he does. 

“The other ghosts were super against me becoming the ghost king, but when I rejected the title, it gave them newfound freedom. They like me a bit for that. Since I never killed any of them and since I treat them like people and not like ‘ghost scum’,” he said in a mocking tone before continuing. “They view me as one of them, in a way. So over time,  _ they _ began treating me like their unspoken king no matter what I said.”

“I know I’m never going to be able to grow up or live a normal life. I’m always going to be hunted and attacked by both the living and the dead because I’m stupid enough to walk the thin line between them,” the ghost gave a disturbing laugh, head tilted back and laughter ringing loudly throughout the room. Valerie felt actually  _ creeped  _ out by the ghost for the first time. 

“T-they all want a king, and-and this town wants some young, underdog  _ hero _ ,” there was another long pause, and Valerie could see shiny tears on the ghost’s pale skin. He continued, voice much softer and defeated. “I can’t be both. But really, I don’t  _ want _ to be  _ either _ ,” the ghost’s voice broke, and Valerie got the feeling that this was the first time he’d ever admitted to this. “I-I don’t  _ want _ to be a hero. I-I  _ died _ , I fucking died, and the first thing I was told what I should do to help others. And I get that, I do, and I don’t regret it, but-but… I don’t even know,” Phantom finished pathetically.

“I like protecting people, but it’s a  _ big _ task, and I just- I just can’t  _ handle _ it sometimes!” The ghost said, hands pulling harshly at his dirty hair. 

Valerie nodded, feeling awkward for being on the receiving end of Phantom venting about his pathetic life. 

“I thought you said  _ my _ life was supposed to be the sob story,” she said at a try for humor. It hung dead in the stale air, only adding to the suffocating pressure in the room. 

“Okay, Phantom. So what? The ghosts that run around causing havoc and some big scary ghost that has to be in the ghost zone because I’ve never even  _ heard  _ of him want you to be some king? And some of your friends want you to protect the town? So fucking  _ what _ ? You’re a  _ ghost _ . A very powerful and respected ghost. Couldn’t you just up and leave? Or hell, if you just said  _ no _ , it’s not like they could force you to do a damn thing. So are you just weak or a coward?” She finally said. 

She hoped she didn’t anger Phantom… she just wasn’t really the best at pep talks. She understood most of what he told her, but she still didn’t understand his responses. If he was powerful enough to overthrow the past ghost king, why should he take shit from  _ anyone _ ?

Phantom stared at her in shock for several seconds, but then his face split into a smile. “I can’t leave because I made Amity my lair. I don’t know enough about ghosts to move my lair or… To be honest, I’m not even sure what a lair is or why ghosts have them. Hell, I’m not even smart enough to know how to refuse a  _ summoning _ ,” he said with a small laugh while gesturing towards the chalk circle glowing beneath him. 

“But, I am saying no. At least to the ghost king thing. I hope Clockwork doesn’t lash out at the town because of it though. And… I like protecting Amity. I do, but it’s…” Phantom trailed off, as if not quite sure of the right words. 

“Draining, mentally exhausting, dangerous, annoying…  _ lonely _ ?” Valerie offered with a huff, glancing up at the floor to see Phantom nodding at her. 

“Yeah, it really is.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, the last chapter. It's always so nice to finally wrap up a story.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Valerie had thought long and hard on whether or not to believe the young ghost. He  _ seemed _ honest, but she still wasn’t sure she could trust him. He was a ghost, after all. 

But she found herself enjoying his company more and more. It had been two days since his… outburst? Confession? Impromptu therapy session?

She’s not sure  _ what _ to think of all the things the ghost told her, but she did notice that she was spending an awful lot more time with him than before. She tried to convince herself that it was because she was using his mental or emotional weakness to gain new information, but she knew that it wasn’t true. 

Because when Phantom spoke, she never once tried to direct the conversation a certain way or asked invasive questions. Well, not since two days ago when they had their ‘ _ heart-to-heart _ ’ as Phantom called it. 

The ghost actually seemed to be somewhat happy whenever she showed up, which made her conflicted. 

Should she feel like shit that she was basically Stockholm Syndroming a fucking ghost? Or should she be happy that he didn’t seem as depressed or hopeless as he did days prior?

She wasn’t sure. She  _ also _ wasn’t sure if he was happy because he  _ knew _ his words the other day had changed her mind a bit. What if that was his play? Share some sob story to soften her up in hopes that she would release him? The possibility grinded on her nerves because that’s  _ exactly _ what she wants to do. 

The town still hated her and ghosts were actively planning attacks against her. She stopped patrolling because she realized  _ she _ was the reason for the increase in ghost activity, but the ghosts simply attacked the townspeople until she was forced into action. 

Was this what she had wanted? Taking down the most powerful defender of Amity that she thought was a threat because of his affiliations with the other ghosts? Ghosts that viewed him as their  _ king _ ? That were now raging because they figured she was the one responsible for their king’s disappearance?

God, she just  _ didn’t _ know  _ anything _ .

But her mind calmed down when she descending the steps to where she was keeping Phantom.

She knew her captive wouldn’t stay here for much longer. Her father was getting suspicious, the townspeople and ghosts were throwing fits every day, and she was fuckign  _ tired _ . Defending both the town and herself was a big task. Perhaps too big for one person to carry alone. 

Not only that, but Phantom was looking worse and worse each day. Sure his  _ attitude _ had improved, but his aura was so weak she could barely see it. Occasionally, she would see Phantom having some inner turmoil with sweat breaking out across his skin as if trying to simply keep his form together. She was killing him. 

There were even occasional flashes of light that had Phantom freaking out before he managed to get whatever was happening back under control. 

With his weakening body and her weakening spirit, she knew this couldn’t last forever. 

So today, she brought him an offer. 

“So Phantom, if I were to let you go, what would you do first?” She asked as she slid the food she had brought him into the summoning circle. 

He didn’t even try to grab her hand or make to harm her in any way and instead went for the bag of food. 

He hummed before taking a massive bite of the burger. Valerie waited in silence as he chewed and swallowed.

“I guess I would go see my friends and tell them I’m still alive. Then I’d go check up on my living family to see how they are. I’m not sure if I’d be able to patrol or anything, or if I could risk getting into a fight with anybody right now. Hell, even the  _ Box Ghost _ could probably kill me right now,” he said with a chuckle as if his deteriorating body was humorous rather than tragic. He didn’t even seem to be upset with Valerie about it either.

Which was  _ another _ thing Valerie couldn’t understand. Phantom didn’t seem to harbor any ill feelings towards her anymore. He was certainly angry and then sad for the first several weeks, but now he just seemed… defeated. As if he’s already accepted what will happen to him. Plus, he suddenly has a  _ family? _ A very  _ alive _ family? 

“Why do you ask?” 

His voice brought her out of her thoughts and she looked up from the floor to meet his eyes. He wasn’t focused on her at all, instead choosing to shovel fries into his mouth. 

Why  _ did _ she ask? She knew, deep down, that it was because she desperately wanted to release him. Her life had been shit before, but it was even worse  _ without _ Phantom protecting the town and keeping the ghosts in check. Hell, him taking the spotlight from the media was so much more helpful than Valerie could have ever understood until now. 

He had been the one being slammed for each and every decision he made that had backfired in any way. He was the one responsible for property damage and ghost fights that went unchecked in the town. He was expected to be at every incident and to protect every citizen. Now, all of those duties fell unto her and she simply wasn’t able to handle it. Not alone, anyways. 

“I was thinking of letting you go.”

The words resulted in a silence that suffocated them both. Phantom had stopped chewing and was staring at her, but his eyes were unreadable. 

There was more that Valerie wanted to say, but her mind drew a blank. She would simply wait for his reaction and go from there. With his dull, green eyes burning into hers, she suddenly felt inadequate dressed in sweatpants and a loose tank top. He was so…  _ intense _ she almost felt like she was staring at a predator. 

But he wasn’t being threatening, it was simply the first time he had looked at her with resolution…  _ hope _ . 

“D-do you really mean that?” He said after forcing the mostly unchewed food down his throat. 

Valerie shrugged. “If you agree to a few terms.”

When Phantom didn’t reply, she continued: “I want to be able to be in contact with you. For both information and to ask questions if I think you’re being a threat to the town. Also, I want assurance that you won’t just run away. The ghosts are wreaking havoc on the town due to your absence. The townsfolk are upset, too. I want you to tell the media that I had nothing to do with your disappearance.” 

She felt guilty for wanting to avoid the repercussions of taking him captive, but she couldn’t still protect a town that had no faith in her. Even if they’re rightly accusing her. 

Phantom nodded. “The ghosts,” he said before pausing, as if trying to word the next sentence carefully. “You couldn’t keep them in check?”

Valerie stiffening and Phantom winced. “ _ No _ , it’s not that. They’re attacking  _ me _ specifically. In groups. I didn’t even know ghosts  _ could _ work together, but you try fending off six C-listed ghosts at a time.” She said gruffly while glaring at the spot between her feet. 

“Oh, I see. They must have guessed that you were the only person strong enough to take me down. The townspeople, too. So you want me to return to the spotlight and say that you weren’t responsible,” Phantom said. 

Valerie nodded and Phantom hummed in response. “If you want to stay in contact, I assume that means you’ll want to work together and split the workload some. And you won’t be able to continue protecting the town if the town hates you. And since the ghosts think that we’re enemies, they must think taking you out would be a favor for me. And if that happens, the town will lose faith in me, too. Which would be bad for everyone,” Phantom sighed and then took another bite of his burger. “So, sure. I’ll cover for you. I know just the person to blame, too.”

Phantom looked up at her and smiled, bright and mischievous, but for once, Valerie had full faith that he wouldn’t turn his back on her. Even though he had every right to hate her, it almost seemed like he regarded her as a friend. She returned the smile. Hopefully one day he’ll be able to think of her as an ally, too.

* * *

  
  


**_Breaking News!!!_ **

Town hero Danny Phantom has returned to the spotlight after a jarring three weeks of being missing from the scene. In his absence, Red Huntress defended the town from a large number of high scale ghost attacks despite the town suspecting them of being the cause of Phantom’s disappearance.

However, just today, Phantom confirmed that the Huntress had nothing to do with his disappearance and that the ‘ _ Wisconsin Ghost _ ’ was the culprit responsible. Phantom claimed that the ghost was the biggest threat to the town and needed to be dealt with immediately. 

Although Phantom does not appear injured, he assured that his absence was a strenuous one and that he would be trusting Red Huntress to keep the town safe until he was back on his feet.

With Phantom’s return, the ghosts that had been almost constantly attacking Amity seemed to have retreated. One citizen overheard the ghost known as ‘Skulker’ claim that their goal to kill the Huntress for taking down Phantom was finished since Phantom proclaimed their innocence. 

While it is still unknown whether the ghosts were attacking more frequently to try and kill the Red Huntress or whether they were doing it out of loyalty or revenge for Phantom, the one thing we  _ do _ know is that the struggle of the past several weeks is over. 

With Amity’s Number One Hero back in action, the ghosts have been deterred from remaining in Amity. 

We can trust the Red Huntress, who got us safely through Phantom’s absence, to keep us safe for a while longer until Phantom can return. 


End file.
